26 October 2007
BBC Worldwides Global Channels business has selected GlobeCast as its distribution partner for the expansion of its four new entertainment channels to the Telstar 10 and HOT BIRD satellites in Asia and Europe. BBC Knowledge, BBC Entertainment, BBC Lifestyle and CBeebies are currently available to IPTV, DTH and Cable Operators in India, Hong Kong, and Singapore and all four channels will launch in Poland with major operator Cyfrowy Polsat in December.
BBC Worldwides bouquet is adapted into regional formats with dedicated content and audio streams, offering programming tailored to each audience, for example, CBeebies in India is available to audiences in both Hindi and English. Furthermore, Polish DTH operator Cyfrowy Polsat will offer the channels with dedicated Polish audio, and in Hong Kong BBC Knowledge and BBC Lifestyle will carry traditional Chinese subtitles with English audio from the first quarter of 2008.
Produced in Singapore, the channels are sent via fibre to GlobeCasts local Technical Operations Centre for encryption and multiplexing. The feeds are then uplinked to the Telstar 10 satellite, which offers extensive coverage of the entire Asian region. Initial pickup of the bouquet has been strong, with BBC Entertainment and CBeebies received at over 100 cable and DTH headends in India. In addition, two major IPTV platforms SingTels mio TV in Singapore and more recently PCCW’s now TV in Hong Kong have launched BBC Knowledge, BBC Lifestyle, and CBeebies.
GlobeCast receives the Polish versions of these four channels at its Brookmans Park teleport outside London, where the signals are encrypted and uplinked with dedicated Polish audio to the HOT BIRD satellite. GlobeCasts simulcrypt capabilities allow it to seamlessly integrate the channels into Cyfrowy Polsats service.
With the expansion of this international bouquet, BBC Worldwide is strengthening and focusing its brand image and increasing its audience in international markets. GlobeCast is a perfect partner in this effort, thanks to its global presence including marketing-leading status in Europe as well as a significant Asian footprint. GlobeCast has a longstanding relationship with the BBC, having delivered BBC World throughout Europe on the HOT BIRD satellite for over a decade.
26 October 2007
After a long-term presence in India with short wave and satellite radio broadcasts, Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW) now aims to expand its activities in India. Considering the rapid growth of the number of FM-stations and multimedia platforms in India, RNW feels that its time now to establish mutually beneficial partnerships with Indian media organizations. For this purpose RNW has assigned Mr. Amitabh Srivastava as Country Representative India.
RNW is the Dutch international public service broadcaster. Via radio, television and the internet RNW keeps millions of people a week informed about developments in the Netherlands, Europe and the world. They regard RNW as the independent, unbiased and reliable source of news. Worldwide, in ten languages.
RNW provides news, background and cultural/music programmes and is active 24 hours a day, seven days a week. RNW already has offices in various locations including Brussels, Benin, Curacao, Costa Rica, Jakarta and New York. It currently has partnerships with more than 3,000 media organizations including USA National Public Radio, CBC in Canada, ABC in Australia and hundreds of local FM stations in Africa, North America, Latin America and Indonesia. For more information visit the RNW website: www.rnw.nl. Media organizations can also visit media.rnw.nl.
Mr. Amitabh Srivastava has worked with some of the top media brands like Times TV / MTV / BBC / TV Today / Walt Disney. Over the past 17 years he worked in senior management cadre. He has been active in the tv, cable and satellite industry and he has handled ground distribution system for several broadcasters in India and Asia.
Mr. Amitabh Srivastava headed both the distribution and the marketing departments for BBC and Walt Disney in South Asia.
For more information you can contact Mr. Amitabh Srivastava,
T +91 11 2612 1520 M +91 98110 55580, E amitabh.srivastava@rnw.nl
10 October 2007
The Broadcasting Board of Governors is pleased to announce the appointment of Jeffrey N. Trimble as BBG Director of Programming.
As Director of Programming, Mr. Trimble manages the development of BBG-wide strategies, plans and objectives for coordinating, developing and improving the broadcast programs of the BBGs broadcast entities, i.e., VOA, OCB, MBN, RFA, and RFE/RL. He oversees and coordinates the programming activities of the broadcast entities, including overseeing the development and implementation of joint programming efforts by the broadcast entities in priority countries; oversees, manages and coordinates related strategic planning, program research, analysis and evaluation and the development of related Board policies and directives; and provides expert advice to the Board on BBG programming objectives and activities, including the development of programming initiatives and related policy issues.
Mr. Trimble recently served as RFE/RL Counselor to the President for Programs and Policy. He was Acting President of RFE/RL from November 2005 until March 2007. From 2002 to 2005, Mr. Trimble was RFE/RL Director of Policy and Strategic Planning. From 1998 to 2002, he was RFE/RL Director of Broadcasting. In 1997, he was RFE/RL Associate Director of Broadcasting.
From 1982 to 1997, Mr. Trimble held a variety of positions with U.S. News & World Report, including New York correspondent, diplomatic correspondent in Washington, Mediterranean Bureau Chief based in Rome, Moscow Bureau Chief, Deputy Foreign Editor, Foreign Editor and Assistant Managing Editor.
Mr. Trimble received a masters degree and a bachelors degree from Ohio State University. From 1979 to 1981, he did his graduate studies in Moscow. From 1991 to 1992, he was a fellow at the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University and at the Harvard Russian Research Center.
He is located in Room 3360 of the Cohen Building and can be reached at 202-203-4545.
10 October 2007
The BBCs internationally famous English radio programmes can now be heard on FM for the first time in the Maldives capital of Male. BBC World Service news bulletins, sporting and current affairs programmes will broadcast daily on Capital Radio 95.6 following the signing of a new agreement with their owner Asna Maldives Pte Ltd.
Helen Kathuria, BBC Business Development Manager for the South Asia Pacific region said: The BBC has a strong tradition of loyal listenership in this region so its great that we can reach yet more people in crystal clear FM quality sound. We are also delighted to be partnering with one of the first private radio broadcasters in the Maldives.”
Mr. Abdulla Nasheed, Managing Director of Asna Maldives Pte Ltd said: We are proud to be associated with the worlds leading international radio broadcaster and thrilled that our listeners can now enjoy the BBCs unique mix of news, sports and feature programmes across the city.
BBC programming can be heard on Capital Radio 95.6 every day between 04.00 and 10.00 local time. In addition, BBC news bulletins will broadcast at 11.00, 14.00, 17.00 and 21.00 with sporting news at 13.50 and 20.50. Health Check can be heard on Mondays at 1530.
10 October 2007
Teletrax has engaged the services of Pilson Communications, Inc., whose president, Neal H. Pilson, was formerly president of CBS Sports, and DPB Communications, Inc., managed by Dave Berman, former senior vice president of PanAmSat, to develop television sports rights and content management opportunities for the global broadcast intelligence company, it was announced today. Teletrax is a subsidiary of Medialink Worldwide Incorporated (Nasdaq: MDLK) and recently announced an agreement with Major League Baseball® to test its digital watermarking and broadcast evaluation service.
Pilson, recently listed among the top 20 most influential sports business media executives by the Sports Business Journal, and whose current clients include NASCAR, Arena Football League, the Rose Bowl, World Series of Poker and JetBlue Airways LiveTV, among many others, served in a number of executive capacities at CBS, including two terms as president of the networks sports division. Berman also served CBS in several capacities in New York and London, including 10 years as vice president of production, operations and administration of CBS Broadcast International, before joining PanAmSat, the worlds largest private provider of satellite-based communications services, which was merged with Intelsat in 2006.
Neal and Dave bring unique skills, extraordinary contacts, industry knowledge and business savvy that will help expand Teletrax already an established presence in the television news, entertainment and advertising sectors into the very dynamic sports arena, said Laurence Moskowitz, chairman of Teletrax and chief executive of Medialink. Sports leagues, teams and associations face an increasingly difficult task in tracking and protecting their valuable content. Neal and Dave will help us bring the power of digital watermarking technology and the global reach of Teletrax into this vibrant marketplace.
There is a rapidly growing need for greater transparency and accountability in the world of television sports coverage, Pilson explained. Billions of dollars, euros, pounds and yen are involved in the payment for broadcasting rights and the sale of advertising and sponsorship. With so much value at stake, an electronic watchdog such as Teletrax is not a luxury, but a critical tool. Pilson and Berman will work with Teletrax sales and business development director Christopher Golden, who joined Teletrax earlier in the year from The Hollywood Reporter.
Teletrax offers the only digital video monitoring and content tracking service that provides vital broadcast intelligence on a global scale to video providers such as entertainment studios, news organizations, TV syndicators, and the advertising industry. The company is a joint venture between Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands (NYSE: PHG) and Medialink, with an underlying technology that is patent protected both by Philips and Digimarc Corp. (Nasdaq: DMRC).
Teletrax currently maintains a proprietary network of detectors that monitors the television broadcasts of nearly 1,500 channels from more than 50 nations, including all 210 markets in the United States, representing all measured U.S. television households. Its international network covers television stations across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, Australia, South and Central America, and Canada. Teletrax clients include ABC Television Network, Associated Press, BBC, CBS Television, Disney-ABC Domestic Television, Fox Broadcasting Company, NBC News Channel, The NBC Agency, NBC Universal Domestic Television, Reuters Television, United Nations, ITN Networks, Euro RSCG 4D DRTV, and Medialink. A number of other companies are also in active trials with the Teletrax service.
